Massachusetts Parking

With record high snowstorms hitting Boston this year, residents are participating in the long tradition of parking space savers. Parking has become a huge challenge for Bostonians with so much snow, Boston doesn’t even know where to put it. Even Mayor Marty Walsh has become a bit frustrated discussing the controversy and competitiveness of them when questioned on the topic at blizzard press conferences. With the amount of snow being so outrageous this year, so are the parking savers. Here are our favorite parking space savers from this season:

6. Although this parking saver is a classic chair, it makes our list because it’s probably the most outrageously huge parking spot ever dug out of snow.

There is a hot debate around Boston on whether or not parking savers should be allowed. The best way to approach it respect your neighbors. Everyone is dealing with the aftermath from these storms. There is a lot of snow in Boston, and even more heading our way. On the bright side, we can’t wait to see those crazy space savers continue to pop up around Boston. Let us know the craziest ones you find!

When purchasing a new vehicle what do you look for? Your criteria may contain everything from a price range and safety rating to a leather interior or extra cup holder. A new study released by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Ford Motors may motivate you to add another item to your vehicle checklist: parking assistant program.

A recent technology appearing in a number of new vehicles underwent a study to determine if the parking assistance has an effect on drivers’ stress levels. This proved to be a study important to many motorists as a Harris Interactive study revealed approximately 31% of drivers avoid parallel parking if at all possible.

The study observed 42 drivers’ stress levels with EKG monitors while parallel parking and backing into a tight-fitting parking spaces. As revealed by the study, these sometimes difficult parking maneuvers exerted less stress on the driver while using an automatic parking-assist system.

Drivers’ average heart rate decreased from 83 beats per minute when manually parking to 71 beats per minute while using Ford’s Active Park Assist technology. The average 12 beat per minute drop in drivers’ heart rate accompanied a 30% decrease in drivers’ perceptions of their own stress levels while using the assistant.

The parking assistant program utilizes sonar to determine if the vehicle will fit in the parking space and help to guide it into the spot. While parking the driver controls breaks and thrust as the computer turns the vehicle. For more information on the MIT study please visit the MIT Release at: MIT News.

The Brookline Police towed a vehicle with more than $1,000 of outstanding parking tickets. After impounding the vehicle, police found the owner also had two additional vehicles wanted for outstanding parking tickets. Do you think this is little ridiculous? However ridiculous it is, outstanding tickets have increased as delinquent drivers avoid paying their parking tickets. The Brookline police department has found a new way to catch these not-so-sneaky drivers with the help of new technology purchased this last year.

A new system created by Velosum Inc., a Utah based company, have allowed officers to write and document tickets in a quick manner with additional data. A few features the new technology include writing tickets with a special ballpoint pen uploading the officers handwriting to the town website and the use of a cell phone feature to take digital photos of a vehicles location, plates, expired meter, and other helpful images. After the implementation of these devices it has become much more difficult for drivers to protest a parking ticket.

“It’s pretty hard to tell someone you’re not parked in front of a hydrant when there’s a picture.”

The new technology also gives officers the ability to upload parking tickets to the department’s website in less than a minute. This is key for officers as they will be able to compare the ticketed vehicle with a tow list and request a tow truck if necessary. A hope of the new technology is to gain an advantage over out of state drivers. Overrun by out-of-state college students the town has difficulties collecting owed tickets. Brookline has averaged a collection of only 65% of parking fines on out-of-state owned vehicles as they collected 90% from in-state drivers according to a study by Efficiency Initiative Committee in 2009. Massachusetts residents with outstanding parking tickets may be denied a license or registration renewal, however the out of state students do not face the same fate.

Collections on parking fines are expected to increase, however subsequently the number of parking violations have recently decreased. Cracking down on drivers racking up thousands of dollars in parking tickets is making all the difference.